How to become a finance and investment analyst or adviser
Official title: Finance and investment analysts and advisers
Also called: Analyst, Finance agent, Credit analyst, Equity analyst, Finance adviser, Pension adviser, Finance analyst, Pricing analyst, Finance partner, Mortgage adviser, Pensions adviser, Treasury analyst
Finance and investment analysts and advisers advise customers, who may be individuals, companies or specialist groups, on the purchase of investments, insurance, mortgages, pensions and other financial services and products.
Main tasks
- Predicts the likely long- and short-term future performance of securities and other financial products and advises upon what will be an appropriate investment for their clients
- Analyses the financial position of clients, considering outgoings, dependants and commitments
- Advises on the relative merits of pension schemes, insurance policies and mortgages that best meet the needs of clients given their personal circumstances
- Monitors information on the socio-economic environment and interprets the implications of such information for their clients
- Prepares summary reports of findings for fund managers
- Keeps up to date with financial products, legislation and requirements for compliance with the relevant regulatory authority
- Identifies and attracts new clients by arranging visits and explaining the benefits of financial products
How to become one
There are no formal academic requirements although entrants usually possess GCSEs/S grades and a degree in a relevant subject is sometimes required. Training may be undertaken in-house or entrants may attend courses run by professional institutions. Registration with a regulatory authority is required in some positions.
Ways in
- Apprenticeship (England): Financial services customer adviser (level 3). England. Typically 18 months. Skills England standard ST0185.
- Apprenticeship (England): Insurance professional (level 4). England. Typically 24 months. Skills England standard ST0241.
- Apprenticeship (England): Investment operations specialist (level 4). England. Typically 18 months. Skills England standard ST0180.
- Apprenticeship (England): Mortgage adviser (level 3). England. Typically 12 months. Skills England standard ST0182.
- University: Business & Commerce degrees, Offered by 27 universities in the UK
Pay · Outlook
- Median full-time pay: £50,330 a year The middle half earn £36,872 to £70,665.
- About 313,600 people work in this job now, and about 352,000 are projected by 2035. (+12.2%)
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Questions people ask
How do I become a finance and investment analyst or adviser?
There are no formal academic requirements although entrants usually possess GCSEs/S grades and a degree in a relevant subject is sometimes required. Training may be undertaken in-house or entrants may attend courses run by professional institutions. Registration with a regulatory authority is required in some positions.
How much does a finance and investment analyst or adviser earn in the UK?
Median full-time pay is £50,330 a year (Office for National Statistics). The middle half earn £36,872 to £70,665.
Is a finance and investment analyst or adviser a growing career in the UK?
Yes. Employment is projected to grow 12% by 2035, from about 313,600 to about 352,000 people (Department for Education).
Do you need a degree to become a finance and investment analyst or adviser?
Usually. 69% of people in this job hold a bachelor's degree or higher.
Sources
- Office for National Statistics: Annual Population Survey: employment by occupation (April 2025 to March 2026), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Office for National Statistics: SOC 2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions (2026-08-27 edition), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Department for Education: Skills Imperative 2035: employment projections by occupation (2021 to 2035 (Warwick IER / Cambridge Econometrics)), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
- Office for National Statistics: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14 (2025 provisional), OGL v3.0, retrieved 2026-10-03
Updated 2026-10-03
Graduate outcomes: Discover Uni dataset, HESA (www.hesa.ac.uk), licensed under CC BY 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0). Aggregated by subject and adapted by Peernovo.